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peal

[ peel ]
/ pil /
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See synonyms for: peal / pealed / pealing on Thesaurus.com

noun
verb (used with object)
to sound loudly and sonorously: to peal the bells of a tower.
Obsolete. to assail with loud sounds.
verb (used without object)
to sound forth in a peal; resound.
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In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

Origin of peal

1350–1400; Middle English pele, akin to peal to beat, strike (now dial.)

OTHER WORDS FROM peal

in·ter·peal, verb (used with object)un·pealed, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH peal

peal , peel
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use peal in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for peal (1 of 2)

peal1
/ (piːl) /

noun
a loud prolonged usually reverberating sound, as of bells, thunder, or laughter
bell-ringing a series of changes rung in accordance with specific rules, consisting of not fewer than 5000 permutations in a ring of eight bells
(not in technical usage) the set of bells in a belfry
verb
(intr) to sound with a peal or peals
(tr) to give forth loudly and sonorously
(tr) to ring (bells) in peals

Word Origin for peal

C14 pele, variant of apele appeal

British Dictionary definitions for peal (2 of 2)

peal2
/ (piːl) /

noun
a dialect name for a grilse or a young sea trout
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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